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Tune in here for a special live broadcast from the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival on BBC Radio 3’s Hear and Now program. The performance took place on November 26, 2016 starting at 10pm in Bates Mill. Many thanks to hcmf// for inviting me, to the team of Hear and Now for the smooth experience, and to Michael Finnissy, who wrote the beautiful Song 1 and Song 16. The broadcast will be available for listening until December 26, 2016.

Soprano Peyee Chen delivered phenomenal clarity from her first note, and when she soared with a grace that seemed to be ethereal, the result was spine tingling. She was matched by the mellifluous warm timbre of tenor John Potter; their vocal lines superbly complimented the captivating text, delivered with passion, precision, and a sense of ease.

Central to this concert was a series of musical settings called Laude, set for one or two voices with an instrumental ensemble consisting of Bryars himself on double bass, with various combinations of cello, electric guitar and two violas. They were exquisitely sung by soprano Peyee Chen and tenor John Potter. Two lovely instrumental Laude maintained the mood of restrained quasi-devotional ardour.

Soprano, Peyee Chen, possesses a voice that the very Gods would applaud and she is not afraid to use it. Her extraordinary purity of tone joined Woodrow’s eerie guitar work so perfectly that it was at times difficult to distinguish one from the other. She can produce a whisper that sends shivers up the spine, or a crescendo that threatened the very timbers of the Elder Hall roof, at a whim.

I had a wonderful time there and really, really enjoyed being with the group! We’ll have another chance to make wonderful music together in June, this time in Glasgow and with dancers. I’m looking forward to it!

The album “La Marée” by Pierre Alexandre Tremblay, which has a piece that we worked on together (Still, Again), has been awarded the Prix Opus ‘Disque de l’année’ by Conseil Québécois de la Musique! Congratulations to PA, and also to everyone involved in making it happen!

For more information about the album, or to purchase it, please visit here.

While we were at Lucerne preparing for a performance of Berio’s Coro with the Lucerne Festival Academy Choir, Orchestra, and Sir Simon Rattle, a beautiful installation was opened at the Kunstmuseum Luzerne.

Designed by David Bithell, The Place of Whispers is a series of five wood and metal sculptures that record their surrounding sounds. Viewers are asked to whisper dreams, hopes, wishes, things that would normally remain unvoiced, to the sculptures.

These sounds are mixed together using generative processes and are layered with field recordings from around Luzern made by the artist throughout the duration of the installation. Each of the sculptures is autonomous but communicates with the other sculptures to create a large scale, immersive, and responsive sound environment – an ever-evolving landscape of the sonic psyche of Luzern.

While on display, there were also opportunities for live performances and more musical interactions with the sculptures. I participated in one of those events, and it was quite an experience! A sound excerpt from the evening’s performance can be found here, and images can be seen here.

A quick video, done during tech setup before the recital, by Events and Marketing staff from University of Huddersfield. Thank you to the the university for the wonderful gig, and all the effort and help!

It cuts out just before the final couple bars of the first song (out of three)… I’m afraid you’ll just have to see/hear it live some day to find out what the ending sounds like!